Burbank Unified names Guy Myers Teacher of the Year

High school drama classes are a way for students to learn more about the theater and performing arts, but a teacher at John Burroughs High School takes it a step further.

For Guy Myers, being in one of his drama classes isn’t just about learning how to sing and dance.

Instead, he makes sure that every student can be comfortable being themselves and taking risks.

It is that commitment to providing life skills to students that led to Myers to be named Burbank Unified’s Teacher of the Year this week, school officials said.

Myers, who has been teaching at John Burroughs for 14 years, was surprised by Supt. Matt Hill and school board members in his classroom on Wednesday.

“I’m so humbled that people pay attention to what I do, like what I do and want to reward what I do,” Myers said.

“I know that people come see our shows and know what we do, but to be recognized as a teacher and director is so meaningful,” he added.

Earlier in the school year, Myers was named John Burroughs’ Teacher of the Year, and he said he was humbled by what his peers at the high school said about him and his work.

What his colleagues liked most was his ability to teach students how to speak in front of an audience with greater ease than before they took his class.

“Everybody can benefit from a theater class,” Myers said. “It just helps you be yourself, own your physicality and hone your voice. It’s life skills that you can use in interviews and the workplace.”

Senior Zachary Hagen-Smith, who has taken drama and theater classes with Myers during all four years at Burroughs, concurred with his teacher, adding that he feels more prepared to head out into the real world after high school.

“More than any other experience I’ve had here at Burroughs, the drama program that Mr. Myers leads really creates and fosters a sense of growth,” Hagen-Smith said.

“As an individual, this program has shaped me to be more outgoing and more willing to take risks,” he added.

Aside from being comfortable when speaking in public, Hagen-Smith said Myers’ classes has helped him be a better communicator overall by learning how to pace himself when he speaks and to enunciate words.

“I’m going to be a more open person, concise person and a more receptive person because of him,” Hagen-Smith said.

anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com

Twitter: @acocarpio